Neymar Jr's Five qualifying event to be held at Sippy Downs

FOOTBALL: Former Socceroos striker Archie Thompson is among those to praise a global five-a-side competition which will make its presence felt on the Sunshine Coast.

Neymar Jr's Five is the Brazilian forward's signature football tournament.

This year there are 38 qualifying events in Australia, including one at Sippy Downs on Wednesday.

The tournament is open to teams of five to seven players aged 16 to 25, and two over-aged players are allowed in the squad.

Teams set out with the hope of making it all the way from the qualifiers to the national final and on to the world final in Brazil, where there is a chance of winning a trip to Barcelona to meet Neymat Jr at a Barcelona FC game.

Thompson is a big fan of the concept, in which matches go for just 10 minutes.

Every time one team scores, the opposition loses a player.

"It gives youngsters a real opportunity to showcase their skills and it's great that it goes into regional areas," he said.

He believes the competition, which first came about last year, has enormous potential.

"It could grow that big that you might play it (the national final) at Rod Laver Arena," he said.

The qualifying event at the University of the Sunshine Coast will start at 6.30pm.